Sharp LC-39LE440U user reviews

Pros ++ Gorgeously crisp, vibrant, and deep picture quality and color--definitively high-definition.*
+ Excellent viewing angles.
+ Easy to set up; self-explanatory (no fuss!)
+ Surprisingly thin and light

Cons - Poor speakers; sub-mediocre.
- NOT for gaming; refresh rate may be 60hz, but very obvious, distracting ghosting, especially during darker scenes.
- LED-backlight bleeding in corners (very obvious when screen is darker).
- Barebones menu options.

Summary *The TV by itself has really great picture, just as advertised for the "Aquos" branding, but I achieved truly stunning picture and color by hooking this baby up to my PC and tweaking the picture quality from my graphics card settings. Even without this luxury, however, the picture is still great--even better after tweaking the preset settings (e.g. "dynamic").

I bought this when it was on sale, paying a grand total of a little over $400, which I feel is just under the perfect price for this product. The TV is solidly built and easy to set up (just need to screw in the stand). It was pleasantly light, and I was genuinely thrilled at how thin the TV is (it's just about as thick as my 24" PC Monitor).

BUT LET'S GET TO THE POINT--the real reason anyone buys an LCD TV: the picture quality. I am not disappointed. First thing I did was plug in my Playstation 3 and played Black Ops 2, which isn't exactly what I'd consider "hi-def," but I was actually amazed at how the game looked--this TV somehow made the game look better than I remembered. I then popped in a Blu-Ray movie, and after tweaking the preset brightness/contract settings, was genuinely thrilled at how clean, clear, crisp the movie looked. The colors were poppingly vibrant, and the blacks were rich and deep. I had to nod in approval, and I can confidently say what this TV showed on screen was truly HD. (Of course, the picture got even better after hooking it up to my PC--please see note above).

HOWEVER, while I consider the picture quality and screen size reason enough for the money I spent, there were a few other things that left me a bit sore for spending so much. First and foremost, the speakers on this TV are just about the worst I've ever come across. No matter how much I fussed with the treble/bass settings, the sound was sufficiently loud, but weedy at best. The lows and mids were essentially non-existent. I would almost claim that my iPad speaker produces better sound. I would suggest curing this with a decent pair of (real) speakers or a soundbar right away.

Secondly, while the TV touts a 60hz refresh rate, there is obvious ghosting. There are after-images and blurring when there is fast movement, especially in darker scenes. While this doesn't necessarily inhibit gaming, it is distracting. Also, as far as I could tell, there was virtually no lag between pushing buttons and things happening on screen.

Another bothersome niggle I found was that during dark scenes or when the screen is black, you can see the LED backlight bleeding through from the four corners. You will not notice at all during brighter scenes.

Bottom line is that this is a very solid TV that is beautiful to look at--both on and off. The picture quality is crisp and gorgeous, and it is perfect for a small living room or bedroom. It is decent for gaming, and really, the only real problem with this thing is the pitiful speakers, which most people expect from LCD TVs, anyway.